Callie Weaver and best friend Olivia Dixon have finally done it: put their life savings into the beach house they admired through childhood summers, on the dazzling white sand of North Carolina’s Outer Banks. They’re going to buff the salt from its windows, paint its sun-bleached sidings, and open it as a bed and breakfast.
Callie’s too busy to think about her love life, but when she catches the attention of local heartthrob Luke Sullivan, his blue eyes and easy smile make it hard to say no. He’s heir to his father’s property empire, and the papers say he’s just another playboy, but as they laugh in the ocean waves, Callie realizes there’s more to this man than money and good looks.
Just when true happiness seems within reach, Callie and Olivia find a diary full of secrets... secrets that stretch across the island, and have the power to turn lives upside down. As Callie reads, she unravels a mystery that makes her heart drop through the floor.
Will Callie and Luke be pulled apart by the storm it unleashes, or can true love save them?
Kindle Edition, 269 pages
Expected publication:
June 9th 2017
by Bookouture
Genre: Romance
Kristine's Thoughts:
** I received an advanced readers copy from Bookouture via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!**
Callie and her best friend Olivia bought the summer home that they admired on the Outer Banks as children with the hopes of turning it into a successful bed and breakfast. With renovations and a time crunch in front of them, Callie never dreamt that a potential love interest would be in her future. A chance run in with the local heartthrob and celebrity Luke Sullivan turned the world as she knew it upside down and she struggled to deal with her closely guarded emotions. Was he just a playboy after his next conquest or was his interest in her genuine?
Not only was Callie dealing with a new business and the possibility of love but there was the mystery of the journal and lock box that was found during the cottage renovations. What became of Frederick and who was the little boy?
Let me start off by saying that the setting of this book was spectacular. It was so easy to envision the cottage, the beach, and the town of Waves. I could feel the ocean breeze and taste the salt in the air. Hale did an incredible job of describing it and making it just as much a character as the people within the pages. I think the setting was my favourite part of this entire book.
The mystery behind the journal and lock box was too sporadic and I felt like it needed to be a bigger part of the story than it was in the beginning. Callie would just randomly think about it and read small portions in the middle of renovations and her budding relationship with Luke. It almost didn't fit. I think it needed to be front and centre to make the second half of the book more believable. I wanted more journal entries and I wanted more of a back story. Even though it was only a small portion of the beginning I clearly could foresee what was going to happen and there was no shock value at all.
As far as the love story went I was routing for Luke and Callie from the very beginning. Callie's over thinking was somewhat annoying and they were both too squeaky clean and perfect but I liked them all the same and wanted a happily ever after for them. If I'm being completely honest, I wished for a little more chemistry than what I got. Again, they were so squeaky clean that it almost got in the way of me feeling what they were feeling.
Over all this was a sweet and clean romance that is perfect for that summer beach read. With likeable characters, a cute story and a stunning setting it is bound to put a smile on your face.
About the Author
Jenny
Hale is a USA Today and Amazon best-selling author of romantic women’s
fiction. The film adaptation of her novel Coming Home for Christmas will
air on the Hallmark Channel this year. Her stories are chock-full of
feel-good romance and overflowing with warm settings, great friends, and
family. Grab a cup of coffee, settle in, and join the fun!
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